Snowflakes float gently out of a nighttime sky; set aglow, flashing and sparkling like miniature stars in the pools of firelight outside the windows of a small cottage. Weightless, they twirl and spin in the crisp winter air for a brief moment, and then vanish back into the moonlit darkness beyond the firelight.

Sounds of foalish exuberance come from inside the home and drift across the clearing the cottage is nestled into, while cherry scented smoke curls lazily from a high stone chimney and clings to the bare branches of the forest beyond.

Through one of the windows a trio of young fillies can be seen playing a board game; tiny metallic ponies stand upon various rainbow colored paths amidst dice and cards. The three fillies lie upon a woven, oval shaped rug that spreads out in front of a cheery fireplace - two are laughing uproariously while the third tries to hide her face a bit under a fledgling wing.

“Guys, stop it! It’s not funny!”

A red hued Earth filly snickers at the younger Pegasus, “Sorry Sunny – but you have to admit that your piece getting sent back to the start is pretty funny.”

“Is not Rose! Star cheated!” The bright yellow Pegasus filly points a hoof at the third filly, a dappled silver-grey unicorn who appears to be the eldest.

The Unicorn’s eyes go wide as she brings a forehoof to her chest in indignation, “I would never do such a…”

The yellow colored hoof moves from the Unicorn to one of the dice on the floor, “It came up horseshoes, and then flipped over to clouds – I saw it!”

“Star? Did you magic the dice again?” the rose colored Earth pony asks.

The Unicorn pauses a moment, trying to keep a straight face but fails miserably as she bursts out laughing again, “You got me. I had to do something – Sunny is the luckiest Pegasus in all of Equestria and she always wins…”

Sunny sits back on her haunches, her forelegs crossed over her chest, and scowls at the Unicorn for a second. “Cheater.”

The Earth pony smiles, “Oh come on Sunny, it’s all in fun – right Star?”

Star nods, “Knowing Sunny she’ll still win the game… It really was just for fun Sunny.”

The little Pegasus just sits there, a very cross look on her face, “Promise you won’t use magic and I’ll still play.”

The Unicorn sits back on her haunches as well and brings a forehoof to her chest again, “I swear to not use magic during the...”

“Pinkie Pie Swear…”

The Unicorn blinks, the mention of the most binding promise a young pony can make taking her by surprise. “Don’t you think you might be taking this a bit seriously Sunny?”

Sunny simply shakes her head.

Star sighs, “Very well… I won’t use magic during the game…” She closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and goes through the motions, “Cross my heart and hope to fly; stick a cupcake in my eye.”

Rose watches the oath and giggles a bit when Star places her hoof to her face.

Sunny shuffles her wings and smiles, and then lies back down to view the game board satisfied by her friend’s promise. “It was your turn Star…”

The Unicorn likewise smiles and lies down, carefully settling her tail around her back hooves as is proper, and picks up a card from the top of the pile with a forehoof. She scans the card and her eyes go wide again as her jaw drops.

Rose cranes her neck to try and see the card the Unicorn is holding, “What? What did you get Star?”

Star turns the card around so they can see; several dark trees with spooky expressions. “The worst possible card to draw… The Everfree Forest!”

Rose winces as Sunny laughs, “Well Star, it looks like you get to join me back here at the start for a fair game.”

The Unicorn continues to gape at the card as Rose moves the little Unicorn pony marker back next to Sunny’s Pegasus maker. She looks questioningly at the little Pegasus next to her, who merely winks back and smiles sweetly.

At that moment an older Unicorn stallion enters the room, “Girls, girls – it’s late, perhaps we should all call it a night and in the morning we can all go out and build a snow castle. Then we will have a real reason for some of my special cherry-mint hot chocolate!”

“CHOCOLATE!”

He smiles over the glasses perched upon his muzzle. While he and his wife had no foals of their own, it wasn’t uncommon for them to keep an eye on their neighbor’s foals during festivals and events… And being a hobbyist chocolatier, he had a firm grasp of the power the confection had over ponies of any age.

He sends them off to get ready for bed, and laughs at the antics in the small bath as they squabble and fuss over, well, everything!

Eventually the stallion herds the fillies up the short flight of stairs and into the guest bedroom. The tidy room isn’t much larger than the four-post feather bed that occupies the space, but with the front wall being mostly the stone chimney of the fireplace below, it tends to stay plenty warm - even on the coldest of nights.

The fillies all pile into the bed with a chorus of “tell us a story! Tell us a story!”

“A story you say?”

“Yes! One about the Elements of Harmony!” says the Unicorn. The Earth pony pipes up, “No, tell us one about the Princesses!”

The elder pony smiles as he tucks them in, looking from face to expectant face, “Well then, a story it is. But everypony has heard the stories of the six young mares and the Elements of Harmony, or tales of Nightmare Moon and the sisters Celestia and Luna. The story I will tell you is of a much more unlikely hero. A tale of a young colt, just a few years older than you lot he was, who had as big of an adventure as any famous hero…”

He clears his throat a bit and begins, “It was many, many years ago – back before Ponyville was much more than a general store and a train depot…”

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